Kansas City Life Seeks Thrift Charter; Twenty-Seven Insurers Now in

Kansas City Life Insurance Company of America applied for a federal thrift charter this week, becoming the 27th insurance company with a request pending before the Office of Thrift Supervision.

The $3.5 billion-asset insurer has 3,000 agents. Chief financial officer Richard L. Finn said it is seeking to offer a full-range of bank products, including checking and money market accounts, certificates of deposit, consumer loans, and trust products.

Like the insurer, its proposed Generations Bank would be based in Kansas City, Mo.

Forty-eight nonbanks have applications before the OTS. In addition to the insurers there are eight securities firms, four manufacturers, and nine other entities, including two retail chains and two farming trade groups.